A Sipping Tour of Scotland - The Lowlands Continued

13-02-2017

By Whisky of the Week

Last time, as part of our virtual whisky sipping
tour, we visited Glasgow, the Auchentoshan Distillery and crossed the Highway
Line for a quick visit to Glengoyne.
This week we explore more of the Scottish Lowland and we start off
driving from Glasgow to Edinburgh. It is about an hour and a half drive to
Edinburgh, but we’ll take a small detour to Stirling along the way. Stirling is
famous for the Battle of Bannockburn, which saw Robert the Bruce defeat the
English invaders in 1314. It is also the spot where the legendary William
Wallace secured Scottish Independence in the Battle of Stirling Bridge. At the
Wallace Monument, there is an impressive 246 step tower with incredible views
of the area. There is also the Stirling Castle built on top of a 250 ft high
volcanic crag… And there you have a bit of Scottish history in between the
whisky tastings!

Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, is a beautiful
and charming city featuring the imposing Edinburgh Castle on the hill, old
buildings, monuments and medieval churches. The old town of Edinburgh has
preserved much of the medieval street plan and forms part of a protected UNESCO
World Heritage site so it’s an amazing city to spend a few days exploring. Strolling
around Edinburgh, you might find a small monument commemorating the birthplace
of a well know Scottish writer and one of my favorites - Sir Arthur Conan
Doyle. Close to the writer’s birthplace, an oversized statue of his most famous
character, Sherlock Holmes, has been erected.

Sherlock Holmes Statue in Edinburgh

But we are here to taste whisky, so onwards to
another Lowland Distillery. On the way to Dunbar lies the Glenkinhcie
Distillery in the middle of the East Lothian farmlands. This means that raw
materials are never a problem. Glenkinchie lies in the glen of the Kinchie Burn near the village
of Pencaitland. Founded in 1825 by the brothers Rate, the distillery changed
hands a few times and is now part of the Diageo Portfolio.

Glenkinchie Distillery

The Glenkinchie range includes
a 12 Year Old and a Distiller’s Edition. Let’s taste the Glenkinchie12 Year Old
as a fairly typical Lowland whisky. It is fresh and light in character, with
notes of lemon and cut grass. There are notes of malt, wisps of autumn smoke,
fresh fruits, sun baked fields, young wood and barley. It has a warming, dry
finish with a smoky spiciness. A relaxing afternoon spent at the Glenkinchie
Distillery visitor’s centre ends with a drive back to bustling Edinburgh. Before we head out for an evening tour of the
haunted Edinburgh historical sites, lets explore 2 of the whisky bars Edinburgh
is famous for.

The Scotch Whisky Experience
is a five star visitor attraction at the top of Edinburgh's Royal Mile which has
been inspiring visitors to Edinburgh about the joys of Scotch whisky for over
25 years. It’s not a distillery, but a visitor’s experience which showcases all
the facets of Scotch whisky from history and heritage, to production, blending
and the tasting of whisky.

The Scotch Malt Whisky Society
is a club unlike any other. As well as being a place to connect with other
like-minded whisky lovers, here members can enjoy a journey and discovery the
world's biggest collection of single cask whiskies. It’s the perfect place to
experience some unconventional whiskies and to gather some Dutch courage for
the haunted tour!

Early morning at the Edinburgh station, we hop
onto a train to take us along the coast, up to Aberdeen and onwards to
Inverness. We will stop along the way and visit a few Highland Distilleries
before entering the Speyside region.

The gentle rhythm of the train always lulls me
into a relaxed state of mind. The swaying motion and mechanical noise is
soothing and I can easily fall asleep. The train is slowly crossing from the
Lowlands over into the Scottish Highlands. From here, we are going to explore more
Highland Distilleries. But that is for next time.